Annabelle was silently berating herself for missing any signs of injury when Harry first appeared. He wasn't in any obvious pain and his clothes were too dark to show any blood.
Before any of them could get too deep into their examinations, Harry croaked out, "My left arm was slashed with a ritual knife and I banged my head on a gravestone when the Portkey slammed me into the ground."
Dobby had just returned with Remus in time for both of them to hear Harry's explanation of his injuries.
Remus stepped over to Harry's prone form and knelt down next to his pseudo nephew, "Let me see your arm please, Harry."
Slowly, and very carefully, Harry pulled up his left sleeve. There was a long cut where the blade had sliced through the skin. It was fairly deep and still bleeding slightly.
Everyone was a bit surprised that Harry hadn't said anything sooner about the injury. It was obviously painful but he didn't as much as flinch when he rolled up his sleeve.
Tentatively, Remus asked, "Harry, you said that the cut was from a ritual knife?" When Harry nodded yes, he continued speaking calmly, "I'm afraid that it's going to leave a scar. I can heal it but that wound is highly magical."
Harry mumbled softly under his breath, his voice was resigned and bitter, "What's one more scar for the collection?"
Everyone had heard him clearly but no one quite knew how to respond to his comment so they all stayed quiet while Remus healed the wound. A long thin purple scar was left behind as a permanent reminder of Harry's horrifying experience as part of Voldemort's resurrection.
Hermione had been holding Harry's right hand the entire time that Remus was healing the wound. She could feel a change in him, and in their bond. He felt stronger magically and their bond was deeper, clearer than before. She looked up into his beautiful green eyes and found him looking directly back at her. The same thoughts were mirrored in their thoughtful expressions.
Annabelle had been watching the interaction between Harry and Hermione. Something was different from before. They were close when they had visited last time, now they seemed to be able to sense each other and their thoughts. Curious, she said aloud, "How long have you two been able to sense each other's thoughts and locations?"
John, Remus, and Sirius were stunned into inactivity by her statement. When neither teen moved to disabuse the notion, they all knew that something was going on.
Sirius and Remus realized that Hermione mentioned knowing where Harry was right before Dobby brought them here, proving that she knew exactly where Harry was at the moment.
Not the most patient of men, Sirius blurted out, "Okay you two. What is going on here? Does this have to do with Voldemort's return?"
John and Annabelle were worried at the news of the Dark Lord's return. Through their long talks with Sirius, Remus, the two elves, and Dora they picked up quite a bit about the Wizarding World and Voldemort's reign of terror.
Harry and Hermione shared a look, an entire conversation passing in the blink of an eye, before Harry spoke in his low, modulated voice, "Partly, our connection became clearer after Voldemort was returned to his body."
Concerned, John asked, "What do you mean; your connection?"
This time it was Hermione who spoke. Her tone was crisp and clear, "We've been able to feel each other's emotions since just before the first task. Everything became clearer after Voldemort got his body back. Now we can tell roughly where the other is located at any given moment if we concentrate hard enough."
Deciding that it would be best to come clean before the questions started, Harry said, "As soon as I severed the dark tendrils of magic from my scar, I felt something leave me and my connection to Hermione became clearer. I wasn't able to focus on it until I was safe here though."
Turning to Hermione, Harry grasped both of her hands in his and said, "He's gone. I don't get any more flashes of his emotions and I'm positive that I heard him screaming in rage when I Apparated here."
Hermione, Remus, and Sirius were all flabbergasted. Harry had Apparated hundreds of kilometers and then through the Fidelius Charm on his first attempt while being chased by Voldemort.
Before anyone else could speak there was a brilliant flash of flames and Fawkes appeared on the mantle. He had a letter clasped in his beak and everyone was sure that it was for Harry.
Tentatively, Harry stretched out his magical senses and scanned the letter and Fawkes. The letter was magical and that concerned Harry but the feeling he got from the Phoenix was entirely different. He could feel the magical energy pouring through the beautiful bird.
Fawkes gave an indignant squawk when he felt Harry's magic wash over him. When the feeling withdrew, he ruffled his feathers to show his annoyance.
Harry said apologetically, "Sorry about that, Fawkes. I'm still learning how to control that skill." Reaching into his vest pocket, he pulled out an owl treat and offered it to the Phoenix as a gesture of peace.
Before anyone could touch the letter, Harry warned, "Don't pick up that envelope, it's highly magical. My guess is that Dumbledore made it into a Portkey." While Fawkes was munching on the treat, Harry was absent mindedly scratching the swan sized bird gently like he would with Hedwig.
He knew that Hermione was highly amused with his antics and concerned about the Portkey but he couldn't figure out why everyone else was staring at him. Confused, Harry said, "What?"
The Grangers had only seen pictures of a Phoenix before. Seeing one in person was entirely different. They felt heartened by its presence and a bit awed at Harry's comfort level with the magnificent bird.
.....
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